1 before the united states department of education office for civil ...

were eligible for free or reduced price lunch. 3Middletown’s Instructional Expenditure Per Pupilis more than $1000 below similar districts. 4Due to the Respondents’ systematic failure toprovide an adequate level of state aid, Middletown has been forced to eliminate over 145 staffpositions over the past four years.Middletown serves on average 800 ELLs per school year for whom it providesspecial educational programming. ELLs must remain in Middletown’s special programs untilthey test as proficient on the New York State English as a Second Language Achievement Test(“NYSESLAT”). Students who are unable to pass the NYSESLAT for more than 6 years aredesignated “long term LEPs” and must be reported to NYSED.Pursuant to Part 154 of the Commissioner’s Regulations, all schools receivingFoundation Aid funding from NYSED (described in detail in Section III, supra) must provideEnglish as a Second Language (“ESL”) classes for their ELLs. 8 N.Y.C.R.R. § 154.3.Middletown provides two programs at the elementary level for its ELLs: (1) an ESL program;and (2) a bilingual program. These programs are supported by 48 certified teachers.ESL classes are taught solely in English by a teacher certified in teaching Englishas a Second Language (“TESOL”). Based on level of English proficiency, Middletown providesELLs with either 1, 2, or 3 periods a day of ESL instruction. Beginner and intermediate ELLsreceive all English Language Arts (“ELA”) instruction from ESL teachers. Advanced ELLsreceive ELA instruction from their homeroom teachers, and also receive one period of3 New York State Report Card, Middletown City School District, March 25, 2013, available at:https://reportcards.nysed.gov/files/2011-12/RC-2012-441000010000.pdf (hereinafter “Middletown Report Card”), at3.4 New York State School Report Card, Fiscal Accountability Supplement, available at:https://reportcards.nysed.gov/files/2011-12/FIS-2012-441000010000.pdf.5